Low Cholesterol

I just received my cholesterol results. Haven't had them checked in three years, so it was time. I didn't think I had anything to worry about, but I was curious to see how eating (at least) an egg a day affected my results. I've never had high cholesterol, but you never know.

Results:Total Cholesterol: 141 (Anything under 200 is good.)LDL (Bad Cholesterol): The low range starts at 60. I'm at 59.HDL (Good Cholesterol): The high range ends at 71. I'm at 72.

I'm feeling pretty good! I eat pretty well, but don't deprive myself. As I've said before, I need my 2-3 pints of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream a week. The last time I had my cholesterol checked, the nurse told me I could eat more than that. I was tempted, but I'm happy with where I'm at.

My dad has numbers like that...101 total cholesterol, 44 HDL, and the change is LDL.

He isn't exactly mr fitness or mr healthy eating either. I inherited my mom's side that has +100 points for whatever someone living a simlar lifestyle would be at. I haven't had mine checked recently, but at two extremely stressful points in my life I had it over 200. I'm sure it's not that high now though. I need to get it checked.

Wait...was this one of those "Hey [random guy], I lowered my cholesterol" commercials?

Mine's 147 and I eat anything I want to as well. But, I do generally keep it fresh and healthy. I do go through about 2 dozen whole eggs a week. I eat butter, cheese, and rib-eye steaks (but not too frequently).

I eat a lot of oatmeal and olive oil, which are dietary components which keep cholesterol down. I also supplement with fish oil gelcaps twice a day. Cardio and the gym also help to keep the cholesterol down.

I generally avoid chain "fast food" because it's usually factory excrement that I consider, well, not food. I do indulge on rare occasion, like when my 82 year old father wants to go to McDonald's and have a fish sandwich and fries. He doesn't get to go often because Mom won't take him there.

bluey2223 saidMy dad has numbers like that...101 total cholesterol, 44 HDL, and the change is LDL.

He isn't exactly mr fitness or mr healthy eating either. I inherited my mom's side that has +100 points for whatever someone living a simlar lifestyle would be at. I haven't had mine checked recently, but at two extremely stressful points in my life I had it over 200. I'm sure it's not that high now though. I need to get it checked.

Wait...was this one of those "Hey [random guy], I lowered my cholesterol" commercials?

Go dad!

And haha, yes, it does sort of sound like that commercial, doesn't it? Though I think the last time I got it checked I was at 119. My bad cholesterol wasn't bad, but my good cholesterol could have been better -- at that point I hadn't worked out in three years.

btw, there is no 'lower limit' to LDL and no 'upper limit' to HDL... the values are what they are.

a better way to interpret results is to shoot for:

- LDL lower than 100 (or lower than 70 in cardiac and diabetic patients) - HDL higher than 39 (but it depends on the lab; results above 59 are generally associated with a reduced risk of future coronary 'events')- triglycerides lower than 150- we generally don't focus on 'total cholesterol' numbers much anymore

future measures will likely focus on apolipoprotein markers and a host of other measures not currently in routine use, but for now, the above numbers are pretty much 'standard of care' for interpretation.

EricLA saidI just received my cholesterol results. Haven't had them checked in three years, so it was time. I didn't think I had anything to worry about, but I was curious to see how eating (at least) an egg a day affected my results. I've never had high cholesterol, but you never know.

Results:Total Cholesterol: 141 (Anything under 200 is good.)LDL (Bad Cholesterol): The low range starts at 60. I'm at 59.HDL (Good Cholesterol): The high range ends at 71. I'm at 72.

I'm feeling pretty good! I eat pretty well, but don't deprive myself. As I've said before, I need my 2-3 pints of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream a week. The last time I had my cholesterol checked, the nurse told me I could eat more than that. I was tempted, but I'm happy with where I'm at.

I'm envious of your HDL levels. I get my cholesterol checked yearly and my total cholesterol is generally in the upper 130's to mid 160's....it's usually in the higher range if I'm taking protein powder (along with my triglycerides). My LDL is usually in the 80's. But I can never get my HDL to be in the mid 40's. It's always in the upper 20's and low 30's. Actually the highest I got it was 36 once. That's been frustrating.